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Meeting 3pm until 5pm every Saturday in the library at Shakespeare & Company.
I set up The Other Writers’ as a space where creative writers can read their work and offer feedback and criticism. It has been running since February 2005. During this time we’ve heard poetry, fiction, extracts from novels, biography and travel writing. The aim is to give useful and honest feedback while nurturing writers.
The Other Writers’ is born out of love of writing and anyone who shares that passion can take part. But it’s become increasingly professional in the level of criticism and support given to the poets and writers who come.
There is no fixed membership. It averages about ten people, but it’s rarely the same ten from week to week. It’s an open group, and although some people have been coming since the start, others drop in when they can or – often – come almost every Saturday for the 3 or 4 months they’re in Paris. People keep coming back. Comments like, “It’s the best thing about being in Paris,” are not unusual.
The format is simple. Perhaps a writing exercise at the start and then we read and discuss the work brought that week. There’s no preparation, no homework, and instant reactions are valued. The objective is to deepen our understanding of why something works or not, and suggest how it could be improved. What’s important is answering the ‘How?’ not judging work (or the author) as good or bad. You don’t need to bring something to come. People are welcome to just listen and, hopefully, comment on the work of others.
I founded the group 18 months after arriving in Paris and discovering Shakespeare & Co. It was the next logical step in pursuing my need to write. At that time I’d been doing spoken word poetry for a year and a half (see http://spokenwordparis.blogspot.com/ ) but had decided to turn to short stories. Since then I’ve had a couple of stories published and won first prize in the Travel With Words short story competition.
I’m also a regular at Kathleen Spivack’s Advanced Writers’ Workshops. Which is a way of saying I’m learning the trade from the best.
Shakespeare & Co. was the logical place to found the group – especially since it was initially a spin-off from the long running literary Monday nights hosted by John Kirby Abraham. Shakespeare & Co. draws young aspiring writers to it like a magnet, all looking for comrades and ways to hone their skills. The Other Writers taps into that flow of talent and provides the place they need to pursue their calling and strengthen their commitment to it.
Indeed, Shakespeare & Co. drew me. I stayed there for two weeks back in September 2003, feeling myself to be in the historic heart of English writing in Paris, surrounded by the ghosts of that tradition and – crucially – people who really believed in words, believed writing mattered.
Many thanks to George and Sylvia Whitman for giving us the space to hold the group.
I can be contacted at bastable7@yahoo.co.uk but am often too busy to respond to emails. The best way to find out more is to come along any Saturday and try us out.
David Barnes, July 2007.
Meeting 3pm till 5pm every Saturday.
Suggested donation for taking part: 5 euro.
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